2022 Veterans Day Tribute
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently reversed a bid protest decision appealed from the Court of Federal Claims after the protester raised a constitutional question. In Veterans4You LLC v. United States,...more
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently sustained a protest that challenged the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) failure to set aside an acquisition for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB)...more
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) ruled on Dec. 20, 2019, that the "Rule of Two" of the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 (VBA) does not require the U.S. General Services...more
Obermayer Chair of the Government Contracting Department, Maria Panichelli, in partnership with the University of Hartford will be presenting a webinar titled, “Common Pitfalls to Small Business Eligibility.” Please join...more
GAO has decided that the Rule of Two is mandatory and universal, and that it applies even when the VA seeks to acquire goods and services through other government agencies. Another attempt by the VA to limit the...more
HEARING ON THE SMALL BUSINESS RUNWAY EXTENSION ACT - PilieroMazza’s Megan Connor testified at the House Small Business Subcommittee on Contracting and Infrastructure’s hearing on March 26, 2019, concerning the...more
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently published a report on the federal government implementation of the Buy American Act. The Buy American Act of 1933 is one of several statutes implementing a preference for...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently affirmed a May 2017 Court of Federal Claims decision requiring the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) to give veteran-owned small businesses first priority...more
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION - 504 Loan Program Rural Initiative: Waiver of Limitation on Lending Authority - According to an article in amazonaws.com, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the 504...more
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS - Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Procurement of Commercial Items (DFARS case 2016-d006) - The Department of Defense (DOD) issued a final rule, which amended the Defense Federal...more
The Government Shutdown Top 10: Things You Should Know Before You Send Employees Home - Ms. Atallah’s blog creates an invaluable list for government contractors to keep in mind should the government shutdown actually come...more
LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT - Department of Labor Seeks to Loosen Reins on Restaurant Industry By Rescinding Regulation of Certain Tip Pooling Practices - In 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) Wage and Hour Division...more
On July 24, 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS) sent a letter clarifying the data collection and reporting periods for the VETS-4212 and EEO-1 reports. The letter explains...more
FEDERAL AGENCIES - “VA Veteran-Owned Small Business Verification Guidelines.” Federal Register, July 12, 2017. Retrieved from federalregister.gov. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) published a final rule in the...more
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION - Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustments The Small Business Administration has issued an interim final rule amending its regulations to adjust for inflation the amount of certain...more
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING – 2016 GAO Bid Protest Annual Report: Sustain Rate Hits Nine Year High, Up More Than 10% from 2015 – GAO recently released its annual report to Congress, which included data concerning its...more
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING - Category Management: What Contractors Need to Know - In December 2014, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced a new initiative called Category Management. This policy could...more
Well, it doesn’t happen very often, but the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a government contracts case! The Supreme Court granted certiorari on June 22, 2015, and will hear an appeal from the Court of Appeals for the...more
In the prior issue of this newsletter, we included an article on the high standard of proof and the practical considerations for a federal government contractor claiming that the federal government acted in bad faith in its...more
Are bid preparation consultants good or bad for the competitive procurement system? Contractors have argued about this for years. GAO recently upheld a solicitation provision forbidding the use of consultants to...more
In this issue: - The Wait is Over..GSA Awards OASIS Contracts to 74 Businesses - OMB Issues Notice to Announce the Availability of the 2014 OMB Circular A-133 Compliance Supplement - NIH Launches $20...more